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Lipitor patients who reduced 'bad' cholesterol show decrease in heart attack and stroke

Patients with coronary heart disease who took Pfizer's cholesterol-lowering medicine Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium) and lowered their cholesterol to well below recommended levels experienced significantly fewer heart attacks and strokes than those who only lowered their cholesterol to recommended levels

8 Mar 2005

Substances in the urine of pregnant women could serve as a screening/diagnostic tool for preeclampsia

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have found that specific substances in the urine of pregnant women could serve as a screening/diagnostic tool for preeclampsia (hypertension and proteinuria during pregnancy).

7 Mar 2005

Medical tests in the privacy of your own home

A San Francisco-based testing company is currently offering genetic testing, for a predisposition to cystic fibrosis, blood clotting, iron overload and a heightened risk for lung and liver diseases; prices ranging from $199 to $380.

7 Mar 2005

Large hole in boy's liver repaired using innovative catheterization procedure

Through an innovative catheterization procedure, a pediatric cardiologist at Texas Children's Heart Center in Houston repaired a severe liver condition in a 14-year-old male.

7 Mar 2005

Serum sodium level is a major predictor of a poor prognosis for heart failure patients

Research presented today at the American College of Cardiology's Scientific Sessions in Orlando pinpoints a major marker of a poor prognosis for heart failure, hyponatremia, or a lower than normal concentration of serum or blood sodium.

7 Mar 2005

Diabetic patients run three times the risk of developing liver cancer

The researchers trawled a surveillance database used for patients in receipt of Medicare funding for health care, to identify patients aged 65 and older, who had been diagnosed with liver cancer.

7 Mar 2005

St. John's wort increases effectiveness of Plavix

The widely used herbal remedy St. John's wort appears to amplify the action of the popular blood-thinning drug clopidogrel, sold as Plavix, a small new clinical study finds.

6 Mar 2005

New therapeutic targets in liver diseases

Many patients with liver diseases often encounter difficulties with therapy and ultimately require liver transplant to survive. Since many acute and chronic liver diseases are driven by immune-mediated mechanisms, there is a necessity to find new therapies that can inhibit these immune-based triggers and block liver damage.

6 Mar 2005

Proteins link cellular aging and response to calorie restriction

In the March 3 issue of Nature, Johns Hopkins researchers report that two proteins best known for very different activities actually come together to turn the liver into a sugar-producing factory when food is scarce.

6 Mar 2005

Future diabetes drugs may target new protein interaction

2 Mar 2005

An apple a day keeps breast cancer away

An apple a day can help keep breast cancer away, according to a study in rats by food scientists at Cornell University.

1 Mar 2005

Nature’s most sophisticated biological weapon

Nature’s most sophisticated biological weapon, snake venom, largely evolved from bits of body parts a Melbourne researcher has found.

1 Mar 2005

Cells can regenerate without becoming "younger"

It has long been thought that cells that regenerate tissue do so by regressing to a developmentally younger state. Now two University of Washington researchers have demonstrated that cells can regenerate without becoming "younger."

1 Mar 2005

European approval of Pegasys for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B

The approval is granted for both types of the disease – HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B. Pegasys offers the hope of a treatment-free life for thousands of people with chronic hepatitis B as this innovative drug has been shown to achieve lasting remission for a significant proportion of patients.

27 Feb 2005

Methylphenidate linked to chromosomal changes

In a small but startling preliminary new study, Texas researchers have found that after just three months, every one of a dozen children treated for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with the drug methylphenidate experienced a threefold increase in levels of chromosome abnormalities—occurrences associated with increased risks of cancer and other adverse health effects.

27 Feb 2005

Vast majority of products contaminated with the illegal dye Sudan I have been removed from sale

The Food Standards Agency has announced that the vast majority of products contaminated with the illegal dye Sudan I have been removed from sale. This page contains the lists of the products affected plus latest news from the Agency on the situation.

27 Feb 2005

Childhood obesity is a serious health problem in Australia

Professor Michael Booth, co-director of the University of Sydney's Centre for Overweight and Obesity, said teenagers were already showing signs of serious illness caused by their weight.

24 Feb 2005

Pfizer acquires Idun Pharmaceuticals

Pfizer today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Idun Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of therapies to control apoptosis, a process of cell death that occurs in a broad range of diseases.

24 Feb 2005

Association noted between certain non-lver cancers and hepatitis C

People infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) have a higher risk of developing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and multiple myeloma, according to a recent study of the Swedish population.

22 Feb 2005

Short-term use of selective COX-2 inhibitors may be safe for patients with cirrhosis of the liver

Short-term use of selective COX-2 inhibitors may be safe for patients with cirrhosis of the liver, according to a recent study that compared the effects of celecoxib, naproxen, and a placebo on cirrhotic patients in a double-blind randomized controlled study.

22 Feb 2005